Thunders Howl

[POV: Tony]

“So who’s this Den Mother you’re taking me to?” I inquired, following the Elder Floof Noodle carefully.

"Her name is Belle Flower, and she's something of an inventor."

“What kind of inventor?” I asked curiously.

"She dabbles in a little bit of everything from machinery to magic."

“That’s pretty cool.” I nodded. “So uh…since I might as well ask, is she a mad scientist?”

"Mad isn't the word I'd use. She's more… energetic. She is still young but she is so smart and clever, often times she forgets to take caution and has a few times paid the price for it. She is always eager to learn something new, which is often times challenging for her when her nature as a Den Mother meets her intelligence and hunger for knowledge."

"I can imagine how annoying that can be." I said honestly. "But she sounds nice."

"She is, and I feel traveling with you, helping to keep your young with Magnolia safe, maybe have some of her own and such will be good for her. She is a talented being, and travel to the lands far outside our normal territory will do her good."

"Works for me." I nodded. "Wonder what Tina will think of all this?" I chuckled, thinking about how she'd freak at me having kids and two mates already, she'd probably be totally jealous...or rope them into her bedroom for fun as per usual.

The elder led me to a house in the village where various bits and pieces of scrap metal, logs and tools were haphazardly around the entrance and small yard area.

The door was already open and partly coiled around the table, I saw her. Belle Flower. Her coat and scale colors were a far lighter blue compared to any other Floor Noodle or Zinogre I've seen, maybe Aqua blue and her eyes were a deep emerald green.

She was quite large too. Her tail, despite being coiled around the table she worked at still took up most of the floor, and her upper half was… well, like Tina's anthro form, mostly covered by what looked like a jacket, held closed by straps and buttons but there was quite the… window view, showing off all her inner breasts but covering the tits and the rest.

She was working on something at the table, gears, springs and screws were all atop the table and she was putting them all together carefully.

"Wow…" I said out loud on accident.

My accidental wow made her press a bit too hard in surprise, causing a cascade of all the assembled cogs, springs and screws to pop and jump all out of the shell holding them. Belle Flower staired shocked at the mess her work now was, then snarled with rage as she punched the table, breaking it into almost four even prices as her coiled body crushed the rest. "Pain's tooth filled count, damn it!" She roared, tossing the tables remains at us.

The elder dodged this with an almost practiced ease and I ducked low enough to evade it.

Suddenly a very thick, strong snake tail wrapped around my neck and I was face to face with the very angry Floof Noodle Den Mother. "That took a week to assemble properly!" She yelled.

"Belle Flower." The elder said, earning her attention. "Put him down." Despite her clear anger, she dropped me rather readily. "Good. This here is Tony, a True Alpha Zinogre. I have arranged for him to be your traveling companion and mate."

"My what and huh?!" She asked.

"You always wanted to explore the territories far beyond our own, he is heading to the Mountains where the Tree Demons reside. His mate however is heavy with pups, and will require help in caring and keeping them all safe." The elder explained.

Belle Flower looked like she wanted to say something, clearly there was some conflict in her eyes. Soon enough though she just sighed and nodded. "Yes elder…"

"Good. I shall let you both become more acquainted." The elder said, taking her leave.

Now it was just Belle Flower and I, staring at one another in silence.

"I'm really sorry…" I sighed out. "I didn't know all...this took you over a week…" I said, my ears flat against my head.

"A week to assemble, four months to find/make the parts and two to plan and figure out how the damn thing works." She added. "You're really heading into Tree Demons Territory?"

"Yeah...I'd be reasonably pissed too." I nodded. "Also yes cause...I made a deal and I need to Hunt Barroths, and one one of them happens to be past those assholes territory."

"Hmm. Then looks like you can make this up to me." Belle Flower said. "This device was a recreation of one of their common gadgets. They typically enchant their crap to self destruct if the user gets killed so whole parts are few and far between, most of it was bits and pieces I had to find and remake with some guess work and such. Their metal work is also incredible. It took me a long time to craft such small pieces and make them durable enough to use in this thing, yet some how they are capable of producing parts like this in mass amounts much faster than even the cats can manage. Despite their deadly, savage tendencies towards anyone not of their tribe, they are more advanced than any other Hunters tribe I've ever seen."

"Well...good thing I've dabbled in engineering for a few years…" I said carefully, having remembered a cute nerdy guy I was on and off with, and learned a whole lot from that tech genius.

"Really?" Belle asked, clearly skeptical. "A Zinogre dabbling in mechanical machinery?"

"I'm much more than a simple Zinogre." I answered readily.

"Sure. In any case, looks like as well as being a traveling companion I'm also engaged to be a mate in your pack."

"The elder said you were the best suited for...someone like me." I said carefully. "And I want to be the best for you and all my mates."

"Hm, well, at least you sound honest about it. So, when are you planning on heading off for the Tree Demons territory?"

“As soon as the three of us are ready.” I said honestly. “And…with however many pups that are going to be born soon.”

Belle nodded. "A trip that far, hunting and gathering alone won't be able to sustain us well, we'll need specific items for storage and holding food, weapons, armors, ECT."

“Yeah…” I started. “Hmm, sure me and Magnolia could carry a lot of thing’s, but I doubt we could carry everything we need…” I said in thought, thinking about how much crap we’re going to have to pack, gather, and a lot of other things.

"Well need items made by the All Makers to hold all we'll need." Belle said plainly.

“Of course I’d need to ask for another thing from those assholes…” I grumbled.

"Not all the All Makers are like Pain, Demon, Genie and Voodoo." She said, heading for the door. "Come on."

"Really?" I inquired as I followed along. "How many are there?"

"No one really knows." Belle said with a shrug as she lead me out of her house and down the road. "They pop in and out all the time all across the universe. Sometimes they give a name, sometimes not."

"Fair enough." I nodded. "So which one are we meeting if it's not those four?"

"He calls himself Shopkeep, and he sells various wears and items imbued with magic we can not replicate."

"Awesome." I said happily...but then I frowned. "Shit, I don't have any money…"

"I'm sure he will work something out. Shopkeeper is not unreasonable nor is he cruel." She said.

She lead me through town to part of the Elder Tree. In one of the massive roots seemed to be an out of place metallic door. She put a hand to it and it opened upwards with a mechanical woosh.

Inside was… well, it kinda reminded me of a pharmacy store, minus the pharmacy. Oh no wait, there it is, way in the back.

At the counter near the door was a human looking being in a red hoodie apparently sleeping on the counter.

"Right then…" I muttered, shifting to my anthro form just for a better first in person meet. "Hello?"

"Open against my will." He sputtered, looking up and at me. He has a faceless white wood mask. "Oh, you're the other one's brother."

“You’ve met my sister?” I asked, surprised to know this guy’s also met Tina. “How’s she doing?”

"She's a mom now, out hunting monsters and such." He said, yawning.

I bristled at what he said. “W-wait…that means it’s probably been months since I started this!” I said in a slight panic.

"Yes. If it helps it's only been a few months. Being a Den Mother she gave birth way ahead of Celestia, Luna, Twilight and Starlight who are all still pregnant." He said, yawning as he did.

I took a deep breath, putting a hand on my chest as I tried not to freak the fuck out in many different ways at all I missed. “Alright…” I said carefully. “So…what are you selling?”

"Weapons, armor, everything really."

“So how much for a Bag of Holding?” I inquired.

"Depends on what kind you want." He said, snapping his fingers as suddenly the ship around us was all racks and hooks holding various bags, bookbags and luggage bags and all such. "You looking for portability, style, size?"

"Something that can hold items larger than itself and that I can swallow to store easily." Belle said. Well, that was weird to hear.

"I have something." He said, reaching under the counter and pulling up a duffle bag. "This one's got a shrinking spell so it can store away items larger than itself easily and you just need to reach into it and think of the time you want and it will put it within reach. Two thousand rem."

“That’s…just a bag of holding though…” I muttered, confused as to why there needed to be this extra hoop for an ever present magic item. “But uh…so problem is is that I don’t have money…also what’s Rem?”

"It's a multidimensional currency." He said simply. "If you don't got rem you can sell me stuff to equal the value, or do a job and pay it off."

“Well…I’m already on one job, might as well do another incase I’ll need the strength to get past those Tree Demons…” I said carefully.

"Why would it give you strength for that?" Shopkeeper asked.

“Experience, or in case it’s fighting monsters, devouring them and getting stronger from that.” I pointed out. “All depends on the job you have in mind.”

"Yeah, I'm not sending you on a quest to kill something or other. Only reason that's at my shop with your sister is because the town made the shop there a guild too."

“Oh really?” I asked. “Damn…I missed a lot…” I sighed out.

“Meh. In any case, this way.” Shopkeeper said, standing up and leading Belle and I to a back area. All around us were boxes and crates filled with various things from weapons to common place items. And in the middle of it all was a giant hole leading into what I can only assume is a void.

“Uh…the fuck is that?” I asked carefully, pointing to the hole that looked like it might spawn weird demon things.

“A hole.” He said plainly, snapping his fingers as suddenly Belle and I were wearing orange and red vests with our names on them. “Alright, your job is to take all these boxes of stuff, and throw it all into the hole.”

“I feel like there should be a TomSka reference here…” I muttered to myself. “So…why are we throwing all this in the hole?”

Shopkeeper just grabbed a random item from the box, tossing it into the hole. It fell into the endless darkness and after a moment, nothing happened. “Was there a point to this All Maker?” Belle asked.

“No, oh and don’t fall into that hole. You’ll end up in a random dimension and… well yeah that won’t be fun. Or it will be, depends on where you end up.” Shopkeeper shrugged as he walked off.

“Ri~ght…” I said carefully. “Well…not the dumbest job I’ve had…” I said as I went over to a box and tried to pick it up to see how heavy the thing was.

Thankfully it wasn’t that heavy, and I began tossing boxes and pushing crates into the hole. Belle did as well. We did this for maybe two hours before taking a small break.

“Two hours in, and so far we’ve made some good progress.” I said honestly, taking a swig of my water bottle.

“It is strange that this hole leads to seemingly random dimensions. Wonder why All Maker Shopkeeper wants them tossed in?” Belle asked as she drank from her bottle as well.

“Probably either to drop items for people, or it’s a weird garbage chute.” I shrugged. “Probably the item drop for specific people but…who knows.” I shrugged.

“Well, whatever the case I wonder how much longer we have to do this to earn the bag.”

“Either until he get’s back or after eight hours.” I shrugged.

Belle and I worked until the last of the boxes around us was tossed into the hole, and once it was we went back to Shopkeeper, who was selling some stuff to a blue dragoness. We waited for her to leave before walking back up to him. "We finished All Maker Shopkeeper." Belle said.

"Already? That was fast." He said, putting the bag on the table. "Well there you go."

“Thank you.” I nodded while taking the bag. “And it wasn’t really that much to be honest.”

"Well, hopefully next time you have money to use." He said with a shrug as we left.

"I'll go pack my things, I'll meet you and your pregnant mate by the Elders chamber." Belle said as she rushed back to her home.

“Alright.” I nodded while shifting to my feral form and rushing towards the Elder’s place to tell them the good news.

I came around to the Elders chamber and stopped dead in my tracks. Magnolia was no longer rather large in the belly… and she was nursing a lot of tiny little Zinogre pups.

“I…thought we still had time…” I muttered to myself, carefully moving over to my new kids. “So…how many were born?” I asked carefully, hating how I wasn’t here when they were born.

"Twenty one." Magnolia replied. "Thirteen females, eight males."

“Jesus christ…” I muttered to myself in absolute worry. “So uh…twenty one kids…oh no…”

"Something the matter?" She asked me as she carefully moved them around.

“I…didn’t expect that many and…” I said. “I…I don’t know if I can be a good father for…so many…”

"So long as you are not harming them in any way, I don't see how you can be bad."

“There’s…many ways I can harm them without it being physical…” I said sadly. “Whether it’s intentional or not…”

"The fact you worry about doing that proves you will try and won't."

“You say that…” I said carefully. “But…I’ll try my best. So what are there names?”

"I haven't named them yet. Normally Zinogre do not name their young until they begin to speak."

“Fair enough.” I nodded carefully, leaning over and nuzzling Magnolia. “But I found someone that can help us with our kid situation.”

"So their elders gave us a floof noodle Den Mother for our pack, that's wonderful." Magnolia said with a smile and a nod.

“Yep.” I nodded. “She’s nice, hot, and very smart.”

"What's her name?"

“Belle Flower.” I replied. “And she’s currently helping pack for our long adventure.”

"Great."

"Get off me mud paws!" Penny yelled at her brother.

"Make me!" Matthew said, his slightly muddy paws tackling his sister.

"I'm thirsty." Lily said.

"I gotta pee!" Cried Christine.

"I feel sick…" Groaned Marry.

"I ate a bug." Link said.

Why must whatever divine being out there torture me like this? “Alright enough!” I snapped. “Penny, Matthew, stop fighting, Lily we’ll get you a drink soon, Christine go behind that tree, how sick do you feel Marry, and what kind of bug did you eat Link?” I asked all of them with as much care and authority I could here as a new father.

"No!" Penny and Matthew yelled simultaneously.

"Water please?" Lily asked as she pawed my leg.

Marry barfed.

"It was a beetle." Link said plainly. "it was tasty."

I mentally screamed in agony and I took a deep breath. “Alright.” I said as I walked over in my Anthro form and grabbed my two fighting kids by the scruff of their necks and pulled them away from each other. “That’s enough out of you two, then Lily, the river is right there,” I pointed with Penny towards the river flowing fresh water. “We’re getting you to your mother Marry, and what color was the beetle Link? I know most poison’s don’t affect any of us but still, I’d rather you not get sick as well.” I said, as I looked to see if Marry also threw up blood.

Marry's vomit was clear, save for the chewed grass and some weeds that was in it.

"Light blue." Link said.

A low howl and all the kids turned to Magnolia. "Kids, time to nurse." Without hesitation they all ran over, fighting for a nursing spot and taking turns drinking from their mom.

"Somehow I'm not surprised they listen to her so well." Belle said, carrying various sticks and such for a fire later. "So, survived babysitting?"

I lightly whined in mental pain. “Why must this be so difficult?”

"They're young and full of energy, just be glad you haven't knocked me up otherwise there'd be another twenty to thirty of them making your life insane."

“Yeah…” I sighed out. “I love them all to death but…come on…”

"You'll probably get used to it. Maybe." Belle said with a shrug.

“I hope I get used to it…cause I don’t want to be a bad father…” I sighed out.

"You won't be. You're just a first time parent."

“I’m…still concerned…” I sighed out. “Especially with Penny and Matt fighting…I mean…it might be because they're young but still…”

"You said you have a sibling, you telling me you two never fought over dumb stuff or for no reason?"

I thought about it… and there was a lot we did fight over pointlessly. Both before and after puberty.

“I mean…we did…” I sighed out.

"Heh, let it never be said you don't worry for those pups."

"I know I know…" I sighed out. "They're my pride and joy...but jeez is this difficult."

"Well, it is a change for you. You talked about you and your sister's active sex lives and such so of course being responsible for new life you helped create would be a major change from what you're used to."

"Yeah…" I said carefully, looking over to see all my pups feeding and being happy. "It's...a massive change."

"They'll get older, right now they're just two months old, they'll mellow out as they age."

"Hopefully." I said carefully. "Cause...if they're this energetic their entire lives...hoo boy."

Once the kids all nursed their fills from Magnolia it was back into Belle's… special pocket. I try not to watch cause, well, it's weird and a little freaky watching her literally swallowing the kids while. First few times I was very panicked about it, and while I still get a little panicked every time she does, I know the kids are all alright in there. Her… internal pocket can feed them and they occasionally yell out if they need to use the bathroom or something.

One time she actually shoved Magnolia and I both down in there just to set my mind at ease about it.

I knew it was a fetish back on earth but I didn't quite understand why til then. Doesn't mean I still don't find it weird but I can… enjoy it, when opportunity comes around.

It's actually really neat how long her to tongue actually is. And how strong it is.

Apparently Floof Noodle tongues are as long as their bodies and a little extra, and have their own thin pocket that goes all the way from the bottom of their jaw to their tails base. And she can easily use it to life Magnolia and I up with it from the outside, so pulling us or the kids out of herself with it is child's play for her.

She also does other extremely erotic stuff, both with Magnolia and I, with it that we've come to enjoy since she doesn't want kids just yet. Makes sense given our current litter is big.

Once all the kids were safe with her we headed back out. It has been a two month journey looking for this second monster and already the Tree Demon traps and such were becoming more and more common.

"The Barroths scent is around here somewhere…" I grumbled, disabling another of these bastard traps. One positive was when we started to deal with these I got some new skills, Trap Sense and Deactivate Trap...both of which had to happen because I stumbled on one too many and accidentally disabled one too many.

They all ranged in size, type and structure. I'd hate to admit it, but these Tree Demons were just as creative as they were deadly. It was lucky we haven't run into one yet.

"We'll be officially in the Tree Demons territory soon." Belle said. "Just passed that tree line." She motioned to the extremely tall, nearly as tall as that Elder Tree, bank of trees that reached into the clouds, and behind them the mountains that the Tree Demons claimed as their territory. They too reached wide and high above the clouds, probably even more so than the trees did.

"Damn…" I said in surprise. "An entire elder tree for themselves?"

"These are just the banking trees to their mountains. They have no Elder Tree. Not anymore." Magnolia reminded. "Not long after they emerged from it, they set it on fire."

"Assholes." I growled. "The fuck would they gain from doing that?"

Making it through the tree bank, the air seemed to change. The copper/iron smell of blood new and old was heavy in the air, even a sense of dread and rage seemed to float all around us from inside the tree bank.

There was surprisingly few traps in their territory, but the ones that were here were beyond lethal overkill.

Avoiding them was easy thankfully.

The sound of a primal monster's scream echoed nearby. Curiosity took me as I slowly moved towards it.

I spotted it soon enough, an Anjanath pinned by an oversized bear trap, serrated hooks clamping hard enough that they stick into bone. It roared and howled at the pain.

Soon I spotted them… a Tree Demon.

They looked pretty human enough, save for their little exposed bits of skin, showing their bodies are either made of or cloaked in a black gas or mist. I could barely make out it's eyes, glowing white, unblinking and uncaring.

It looked at the Anjanath for a time before reaching into its cloak and pulling out what looked like, well, a single handed compound crossbow. It loaded a bolt, took aim and fired.

My jaw dropped as that single small bolt pierced the monsters head, exiting the other end and stuck into a nearby tree so deep you could barely see it anymore.

The Anjanath fell limp and dead, and the Tree Demon walked over to the trapped leg, praying the massive trap open with unbelievable ease and resetting it before grabbing the dead beast by the bottom jaw and dragging it back to wherever they came from.

I blinked as I carefully backed away from what I saw. "Oh no…" I muttered in fear, at the mere fact that these things not only have weapons that can kill a Monster in one shot past it's tough hide and bone...but to drag it one handed meant these things were powerful.

"This is why we intelligent ones don't come here." Magnolia said, whimpering a bit. "These traps, they don't even need them."

"Which begs the question of why make them then?" Belle asked.

“For the stupid ones or…to prolong someone’s suffering…” I whispered carefully. “But…those aren’t Hunter’s…they aren’t even people…”

"Whatever they are, we best find this beast and get out of here." Magnolia informed.

I nodded as we back tracked some and I managed to catch a faint scent of the monster we're after.

We stopped by a small pond for a while, the smell was hard to track with all this blood scent in the air.

Crack.

I turned and jumped instantly, seeing one of the Tree Demons standing a few feet from us, compound Crossbow aimed at us.

I honestly don’t know how fast I was going, but before I knew it I was already driving my claw down onto the Tree Demon, a fit of rage and protection fueling my actions as this bastard dared attack my mates.

In my charge we tumbled, this thing kicking me off and hitting way harder than I expected. It wore different armor than I expected. It was more a cloak made of thick leather, hat to boots and covered all but it's eyes. I growled at it before charging again, the Tree Demon side stepping me and landing a rib breaking elbow punch into me, sending me flying into a nearby tree. "You should never have come here."

It spoke, a warped, echo like voice. It sounded oddly feminine… and… familiar?

“You’re the one that pointed a weapon at me…” I coughed, getting up shakily. “You were trying to attack my mates…but…hold on, who are you?”

"Your voice…" It spoke, slowly taking a step forward. "... Tony?"

“W-wait…hold on…you can’t…” I started, thinking back to all this and looking at her. “S-Sandra?” I asked, taking a careful step back as I thought a fight would break out between us…and honestly I really didn’t want to fight Sandra…not after everything that’s been going on.

"You need to leave." She said. "Now."

“Sandra…” I started. “I…I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again…but I’m so…so sorry…” I said sadly, still having some regret’s as to how my relationship with her ended and how we got into this mess. “But…alright…how do we get out of here?” I asked, thinking she’s already working with those weird monsters and can’t leave.

"Go back from where you came through and don't turn back. Try and avoi-" She stopped, catching a bolt that was an inch to my snout. "Shit they're here. Run!" She said, spin in and tossing the bolt back at the shooter.

“What about you?” I asked worriedly, thanking my minor healing factor I got from devouring enough monster’s around that helped mend my broken ribs. “Thank you regeneration…” I muttered, preparing myself to run as fast as I can.

"I'll live." She replied.

In an instant she raised her arms and blocked some flying kick from the assaulting Tree Demon. This one was… different. His armor was what I expected. Bones and leather that were sturdy but grotesque, no real care in their craftsmanship, you can even see part of where the eye of the beast it was made from would be. Physically they appeared the same, but this one… their eyes were a blood red, and seemed to be bleeding. The scent of blood and sense of dread came off this one like it was emitting it.

Sandra and this other one were fighting, massive trees and rocks being reduced to splinters and gravel at their hits.

“What in the hell…” I muttered as I noticed that she also had a Monster Hunter Long Sword, I don’t know what version of Long Sword…but she didn’t draw it as she fought the damned thing. “Right then…don’t die on me Sandra, cause we have a lot of time to make up…together.” I said as I bolted towards my mates and ready to get the hell out of here.

Once I caught up with them we started running. Belle hitched a ride on Magnolia and we rushed as fast as we could-

Crash!

A huge tree fell down, blocking our way. Looking, another of those red eyed ones, wearing just as grotesque armor as the other ran from the freshly broken bottom of the tree and rushed at us, claws forged from the bones of fallen monsters adorned it's gauntlets.

I was getting ready to charge up some Thunder Bugs, when suddenly an arrow the size of a stop sign flew in, piercing its side and impaling it to the tree. Despite the seemingly fatal injury it was attempting to pry itself off the arrow.

In another instant, another Tree Demon flew out from somewhere, stomping and exploding the pinned ones head. It's body melting into red goo before evaporating like mist. It then pulled it's arrow back out and fell to the ground before looking at us. It's eyes were white too.

"Shit, and here I thought only the dumb monsters still came here." It said, tossing it's arrow up as suddenly Sandra and that other red eyed one came near.

Sandra grabbed the thrown up arrow, using it like a spear and impaired the other one in the neck. It too melted into red goo before evaporating.

She fell with a thud to the ground. "Missed the head that time Jake. Loosing your eyesight?" Sandra asked the other as she tossed his arrow back to him.

"Nah, just been a while since I got ta shoot a really eager target." The other, Jake, said with a laugh as he put his massive arrow back with the others.

"You… saved us?" Magnolia asked.

"No shit." Jake said.

“So uh…Magnolia, Belle…the sassy sexy lady is Sandra…and I don’t know who Jake is here.” I said carefully.

"Sexy, nah. Not since I got this body. Sassy, yes." Sandra said. "And Jake here is a friend. I owe him my life more times than I care to admit."

“You are sexy, and you know it.” I countered Sandra simply. “But for Jake…my name is Tony and thank you for helping Sandra…I just…hope Sandra hasn’t said too many bad things about me…”

"If she did, I was probably too drunk ta remember." He said.

"Um, so… the Fuck is going on? I thought all Tree Demons wanted we Monster races dead?" Belle asked.

"Not us, just the Red Tree." Sandra said.

"Is there… more than one of your kinds Elder Tree here?" Magnolia asked.

"Yes. There's Jake and I, the Kindling Tree, and then the Red Tree, also known as the Corpse Tree or Bleeding Tree. Pick a name for them but they are the ones who kill and hunt without mercy."

"I can...see why." I said carefully. "They smelled of blood and despair…"

"So, what exactly is going on here?" Belle asked.

"Not safe here. Come on, let's head for camp. Safe there. Mostly for you all anyway." Sandra said as she and Jake began walking. We followed, keeping silent and panicked at any and every noise.

Eventually the smell of… smoke and… charcoal filled the air. Soon, we saw the source.

An Elder Tree, grown into the mountain, burning and making it look almost like a volcano as smoke filled the air at the top. Around the base and along the mountain was… a wall, and houses of brick, metal and steam machines.

"You… did burn your Elder Tree…" Magnolia said with worry.

"I'll explain it all soon." Sandra said.

We arrived at the gates, thick metal that smelled of magic and highly refined smithing. It raised as we got near and once we were all inside, it closed behind us.

Jake walked off to elsewhere and Sandra lead us to a fair sized metal house. She opened the door. "Well, home sweet home." She said. Inside was many weapons, a simple bed, and a small collection of books.

"Well, very monster hunter themed." I said honestly, shifting into my Anthro form just to save some space for Magnolia and Belle.

Once we were All snuggly fit I to Sandra's home, it was time for question.

"So...how long have you been at this?" I asked.

"Ten years. You?" She asked.

"Two...months...how?" I asked carefully. "Sure me and Tina got sent to Equestria...but we were only there for a day before Pain killed half of Ponyville."l

"If an All Maker sent her like they did you, then it would make sense." Magnolia said.

"Yeah. Same group that sent him and Tina to… Equestria, sent me here. Ten year difference kinda sucks but I've learned not to question those All Makers. Won't get a straight answer." Sandra said.

"And currently...I'm here on a little game of Voodoo's." I said carefully. "But...you've spent ten years here?"

"You think I got strong enough to break a rib on you and smash trees apart and turn stones to gravel In two months?" She asked. "That's not how Hunter Shadows work."

"Hold up what?" I asked worriedly. "You're...not you any more?"

"Can you say you're still you with that body?" She asked in response. "I've long accepted I'm not human anymore, frankly I don't notice it like I used to."

"Hunter Shadows?" Belle asked.

"It's what we are. You all only know us all as the Tree Demons, but our All Maker given race name is Hunter Shadows. Biologically we're nothing more than a type of dark energy in a humanoid form, basically. Mentally though we are all on par with any other sentient creature. Well, most of us are. There's a lot of sub-categories and such but everyone from Kindling Tree is intelligent."

"And these Red Tree ones aren't?" Magnolia asked.

"They are but not in the same way. They learn, adapt and evolve, but they all have an unbridled hatred towards anything not their kind. They only learned tool making, armor and weapons by stealing or watching the Kindling Tree. Thankfully they haven't had luck capturing other sentient races nor our own for hundreds of years, otherwise it would be a different story."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked carefully, feeling like I'm way out of my depth here.

She took a deep breath. "Well, easiest to start from the beginning. Some… ECT long cycles ago, the Kindling Ember's Elder Tree grew as part of this mountain. The first of this, the Hunter Shadows, emerged into the world. Our race is a cross between the worst apocalyptic beings in Pain's arsenal, and the intelligent races all around. Our kind was just always unique that way. Back then we were just called what we are, the Hunter Shadows. One of our unique quirks is an incredible pain threshold. We also can heal in an interesting way." She said, removing her boot and revealing a wood looking prosthetic where her left leg would be. "We can lose limbs and just… pull these special prosthetics out and attach them over the stump and they work like the real thing. Body shots can heal easily. Only way to really kill us quick is headshots but even then." She said, putting her boot back on.

"Incredible." Belle said.

"It's something all Hunter Shadows can do. Anyway, some cycles after this tribe showed up, on the far edges of the mountains, another Elder Tree grew. It was… different. Wrong. It's bark looked like pulsating flesh, branches like tendrils and was covered in crimson eyes. From it's maw at the roots came the Red Tree Hunter Shadows. At first, they weren't as smart as us, but they were extremely violent. U fortunately, the older a Hunter Shadow gets, the stronger we get. And they got stronger as the years passed, smarter too. Crafted weapons, tools, raised them or… took them from the corpses of other hunters and sentient beings. Be them naturally formed or crafted. Then… their 'Elder Tree' birthed Ita."

"Ita?" Magnolia asked. "You mean… they're real?"

"Who?" I asked worriedly. "Cause...they sound very threatening when they're born from a Tree grown in Silent Hill."

"In our legends, Ita was a Zinogre Alpha Male, who one day turned on his own and aided the Tree Demons in hunting and slaughtering us, devouring the flesh of his own to the point his stomach and guts were distorted and grotesquely swollen with their corpses." Magnolia said with a small whimper.

"Not entirely wrong." Sandra said. "In our records, Ita was a Zinogre Alpha Male, and fought with us against the Red Tree. Then, one day, the Red Trees captured him. He was the first ever being to be captured by them. When he showed up next, his fur, his eyes, both their blood red colors. Wielding their weapons and attacking all, save the other Red Tree members. When he was captured, we discovered an ability we did not know about. A Red Tree Hunter Shadow was possessing his corpse." Sandra said.

There was a pause before she continued. "We discovered this can be done with any Hunter Shadow, them… us. So long as the… body, is freshly dead and was of intelligent mind, we are able to… take it over, make it our own. The Kindling Ember's have banished the ritual, but the Red Tree capture and preform it with every intelligent race. It doesn't work with us or non intelligent beings so they just kill them and us when we cross paths."

"Oh...oh no…" I muttered in horror.

Sandra nodded. "The early Kindling Ember's pleaded to the All Makers for aid. One finally answered. They said to combat these demons, we needed stronger weapons, hotter fires to melt stronger metals. They showed us how to do it. And so, we did."

"By setting your Elder Tree on fire?" Magnolia asked.

"The tree itself can't be killed by fire, and having grown inside a mountain, turned it into a natural kiln, and forge. Within it the fires burn hottest to melt the metals we craft our weapons from. Things like steam powered stuff came later but the tree has been burning ever since, still alive and still bringing new Hunter Shadows into the Kindling Ember's since. After that, seeing as the Red Tree was only interested in other sentient beings, our allies at the time were sent back, told to spread word of the deadly… Tree Demons and all that. Later on they set up all those traps to deter any curious enough to try and cross in." Sandra now looked over at me. "Guess Tony wasn't what the generations before planned to keep out."

"Well, you know me." I said. "Jeez...and here I thought fatherhood would be the biggest problem on my mind…"

"Wait what?" Sandra asked.

“Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, I’m a father of twenty one healthy pups. And Tina is apparently a mother as well.” I said honestly. “It’s…a bit of a nightmare but it’s worth every moment.” I said, but I felt a small pang in my chest when I said it to Sandra… remembering what’s lost.

"Well, at least they aren't here."

“Technically they aren’t…” I said sheepishly.

"What's technically about it? They-"

"Are in my internal birthing stomach." Belle said.

"What?"

"I am a Den Mother Floof Noodle, I have an internal birthing 'stomach' that can nurse them that they have been in while we are on the road. Keeps them safe."

Sandra turned and stared at me.

The slap she gave me knocked my head into the wall, and I left a perfect imprint/mold of my face in the metal… owww…

"You brought kids to this warzone you fucking retarded peice of-"

Ow… ow…

"Well, I did not know it was possible for one to get this injured being slapped around by an angry female." Magnolia said.

"I see where she is coming from and I do see her point, though I am not sure if she went overkill or was holding back?" Bell Flower said.

“That’s Sandra for ya…” I grumbled. “She used to be the sweetest woman you ever met…but now…” I sighed out. “And that was before she became…all of this.”

"Well blame the idiot who brings out my bitchiness." Sandra said as she was carrying several large metal plates. "Now I gotta fix the damages your face made to my walls and expand my house for you three plus those twenty kids."

“We were going to leave soon anyways.” I growled. “We’re looking for a Barroth near here then one in the Mountains, so we won’t be dealing with your bitchiness for long.” I said, remembering why we started hating each other.

“Is there…something between you two?” Belle asked. “Cause…it looked like the two of you care about each other…but then immediately go at it like a Bazelgeuse and a Deviljho.”

"I dated this idiot for a while." Sandra said. "And the hell you are!"

Thud!

Owwwwwwwww….

The metal plate she threw at me slammed me into the wall and I groaned as the weight pressed on me.

"It's a death sentence to all you intelligent monsters. Assuming the traps don't accidentally catch you the Red Tree will." Sandra continued. "And you will not be taking these two or your twenty one innocent kids out into that hell. Or to learn your stupid."

“Fine, then I’m going and you can go suck on a railroad spike.” I growled, getting up carefully from all the pain.

"Like you're going anywhere, beat up the way you are." She chuckled. "Sit like a good doggy while I work and you might get a biscuit later."

“Fuck this, fuck you, I’m out.” I growled as I started to walk out, ignoring the insane amount of pain I’m in. “Thank you for saving our lives, thank you for letting my mates and kids be here for a while, but I’m done with your bullshit.”

Sandra just stood there, crossing her arms. "You wanna try that again?"

“No.” I growled. “I’m not going to sit down and rest when there’s so many things that can harm my family…I’m not going to do nothing after that…” I said, even as my legs tried to buckle underneath me.

Sandra took a deep breath. "Oh Oscar!"

Thud.

Thud.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

A giant partly metal, partly prosthetic Hunter Shadow came out of nowhere, rushing up to Sandra. He was my height in feral form. "Yes Sandra?" He asked, sounding rather… dim.

Sandra pointed at me. "Look, a sick puppy."

He turned and looked at me. "Yay! I'm gonna be a vet!"

I barely got two feet before it grabbed my tail, pulling me into the most lung collapsing hug ever. I looked to Belle and Magnolia, who both backed up.

"Take care of him, he's very sick." Sandra added, Oscar nodding before walking off with me. Try as I might, I could not escape.

“Get off me!” I barked angrily, struggling to get out of this big guy’s hold. “Every fucking time…”

The next week was….oddly relaxing.

Oscar treated me like a pet but it wasn't as bad as you'd think. At least he let me bathe myself.

Aside from books there wasn't much in terms of entertainment here so I was either reading or napping as my escape attempts usually lead to Oscar… cuddling me. I feel so sorry for all my pets I did tight hugged cuddles with.

"Well, you seem refreshed." Sandra said.

“I still don’t like this…” I grumbled. “This might be nice, but I’m not a pet damn it…”

"This is part of why I broke up with you, you never could just relax when you need it." She said. "Thanks for watching him Oscar."

"You're welcome Sandra." Oscar said as Sandra led me outside.

“Except it wasn’t.” I pointed out to Sandra. “And right now, I definitely can’t relax…I have a family, and I need to get stronger to protect them…I still have absolutely no idea how ten years passed for you and not me or Tina.”

"Don't care, and actually think before acting." She said. "This Barroth you're looking for hasn't been spotted by scouts or recon teams so we need to examine maps and figure out where the fucker is."

“I had its scent before we were attacked. It was faint but it was still enough to go on.” I said carefully. “But…it’s scent is probably long gone from that area.”

"If it's any kind of smart it would be. That's halfway to the Red Tree's… Tree. Saw it once. Still give me nightmares."

“Hey…so remember the Ventrals?” I asked. “That weird crime family back on Earth? Remember how some of them had those weird piercing red eyes? Do you think that has something to do with those Red Tree’s?”

"Well… I mean… Fuck I have no idea." She shrugged.

“It can’t just be coincidence…can it?” I asked nervously. “That amount of bloodlust…” I shivered at remembering that horrid bit.

"No idea. Well, that aside, if you want to survive in this place you best get a teacher."

“A teacher would help...or a whole lot more monsters to devour cause I get stronger with each kill." I said honestly.

"We only got the dumb ones and even those are few and far between. Save the Jaggi, they are all over the place."

"Right…" I said carefully. "But that would help, helps increase my strength and durability, and maybe something else based on something special about them." I said honestly. "How many Great Jaggi's are around?"

"More than there really should be." She said with a shrug. "They're the major source of the town's meat, leather and eggs."

"Oh then that would be fantastic for me." I said honestly. "Cause...so far I've fought plenty of monsters, including a Barroth and...apparently I'm just really good naturally for some reason."

"Well, before anything we should try and figure out where this Barroth is hiding." Sandra said, leading me to a large section of metal with a painted map of the entire Tree Demons, er, Hunter Shadows territory. The entire mountains and some farther north frozen coast were painted in amazing detail. I could see where this Elder Tree was on the map, and where the Red's Elder Tree is. "Let's see, you said you picked up the scent around here." She pointed at a spot on the map, little over half way towards the Red Trees Elder Tree. "It had to have come from the south, traveling north. Given an All Maker tasked you with hunting it, I doubt they'll let it get killed by the Red Tree, so if it's still going north it should be arriving at the Black Ice coast around here." She motioned to the top of the map. "And unless it can swim it won't be going further than that."

"Well good for me is that I can." I said. "So what's special about the Black Ice coast?"

"The whole coast is frozen over coal. It's what gives the ice the black color. Even the 'sand' on the 'beach' is coal bits and dust. Usually we only go there to gather coal for celebrations, but even then we don't go there often or too far. Whole place gets colder and colder the further north you go. And with all the coal around, fire magic is right out. Last thing we want to set the whole coast on fire. Plus, gets to cold sooner or later everything become brittle and frozen."

“Sounds about right.” I nodded. “Hopefully we get to it before it can get that far cause…well I doubt electricity will be kind in that area.”

"It wont. Not to mention even with your natural fluff you won't handle the extreme colds well either. And before you defend yourself, I've been up there and seen other Frozen Zinogre stuck in the ice walls."

“Shit…” I said carefully. “Well, best thing I can do is eat whatever creatures live there and hope to roll some cold resist.” I said simply.

"Hmm… not much lives up there. Few things that do live in the water. So… you and Tina are parents now?"

“Yeah, I’m a father as I told you, and an All Maker named Shopkeeper told me that Tina is a proud mother…god only knows how much she’s trying to coddle however many kids she had.” I chucklked.

"Hm. And is Magnolia the only mother to your kids or have you fucked the Zinogre into overpopulation?"

“So far…at least on this world I’ve plowed Magnolia once for…half a day.” I said simply. “And on Equestria…I plowed four mares, Starlight who was just horny, Twilight who was interested in knowing how good it felt, and Celestia and Luna because the both of them were desperate for kids cause no other race could give them kids.” I explained.

"Huh. Does make me wonder who Tina hooked up with to knock her up?"

"Yeah, I do have to wonder." I said honestly. "Hopefully it's someone good for her…"

"Well, with the Barroth out of reach for the moment we'll need to figure out a way to keep us from freezing to death when we get up there."

"Well...are there any fire monsters around?" I inquired. "Cause if I can't get cold resistance from monsters near that area, I can kill enough to get cold resist from that." I said. "Or...we can go find Shopkeeper and buy some gear for the cold."

"He doesn't have his store here." Sandra stated. "And in terms of Fire Monsters that might work but if it has you generate heat of any kind you'll set off all the coal."

"Well...If it's only internal than it should be good." I said carefully. "Plus...well the Barroth might be a bitch and use all the frozen coal as armor...which I also can but not as well after eating one of them."

"Hmm… there might be a way for you to gain some cold resistance and use the ice and snow in the area to your advantage." Sandra hummed. "Won't be easy to find though."

"Anything can help." I nodded. "So what are we hunting?"

"Not hunting, mining." She said, to clarify, she lead me to a building that looked to be pumping water into barrels for people. She opened the side, revealing the inside was some machine with several special cut and fit glowing gemstones hooked up to it. "See the gemstones? They're rich in endless elemental energy. Water, fire, wind, dirt, and yes, ice too. They're all kinds, found deep in the ground."

"Elemental Gems?" I asked in surprise. "Jeez, where's a Moogle for Synthesis when you need one?" I joked about Kingdom Hearts.

"Sadly not here." Sandra added before closing the side up again. "Hunter Shadows can't absorb them to utilize their energies but we can craft weapons and machines with them. The hard part will be finding some Ice Gems for you to absorb."

"Fair enough." I nodded. "Plus...might as well also make myself a weapon or two, cause depending on the area I can't really fight in my feral form." I pointed out.

"True. That will be easy though, so long as you have the raw materials the blacksmiths will make you what you want."

“Cool.” I nodded. “Well, let’s get to mining.”

"Hold it hound dog, you can't just pick up a pick axe and start mining a hole in the mountain. You gotta talk to the Mine Supervisor first."

“True, gotta ask the head miner before just diving in.” I nodded.

"Yeah. Come on, let's go talk to her."

Sandra lead me to the other side of this mountain based village, where I saw the mine. Not too big but industrial as mine carts and others all moved in and out.

The Mine Supervisor was a Hunter Shadow dressed in similar attire to Sandra… actually, looking around almost all of them wore the same thing. The only difference with this one was the words Mine Supervisor were sewn In her hat.

"Looking for work Sandra?" She asked.

"Not this time Cat. This guy is tough." Sandra said, pointing a thumb at me.

The Supervisor, Cat, looked at me. "A Zinogre? And intelligent?! The Fuck is he doing here?! We put up traps and shit to keep them out!"

"I know."

"Is he… like Oscar?"

"Sadly no…"

“I’m hunting something specifically targeted by an All Maker, and it’s within this area, and most likely moving over to the Black Ice Coast.” I answered. “Also, no, I’m not, and rude for assuming that.”

"Well no other smart beings come here willingly so…" Cat started.

"Tony's Intelligence aside, he needs a shift to try and mine up some elemental gems. Ice mainly." Sandra said.

Cat seemed to think for a while. "Mines aren't built for someone of his size."

I shifted into my Anthro form. “This better?”

"Still too big." She said. "Maybe… hmm…"

"What- wait, don't tell me you're thinking of that idea again?" Sandra asked.

"Well, with his help we could get it done." Cat said.

“Normally people give me a warning before doing experimental stuff.” I said honestly. “And Sandra here should know that more than anyone here.”

“It was a one time thing, and don’t you dare bring it up again.” Sandra snapped at me.

“You’re the one that wanted it to begin with, I was happy to do it until it got…weird.” I said carefully.

"Wait, you two? When and at that how, Hunter Shadows don't have-" Cat started until Sandra flicked a finger at her forehead. "Ouch!"

"It was a long time ago, and yeah, thanks for that reminder Cat."

Hunter Shadows don't have...

“Hold up…what?” I asked worriedly. “You…don’t have…hold up how and why?”

Both were silent for a while before Sandra finally spoke up. "Hunter Shadows are incapable of… breeding. Our bodies as is are made of dark energies and magic. It's part of why that Ritual exists, or so says one of the All Makers. When it's done and we… obtain a body, it becomes ours, so we can… breed, live, grow old… die."

"Yeah, but Kindling Ember outlawed the ritual long ago for us." Cat brought up. "Cause the dead has to be formerly sentient. It was… wrong, to use the body of another's loved one. Besides, our Elder Tree pops a new one of us as is like, six, ten times a month so, not worried about population."

“Jesus…” I said, looking at Sandra carefully. “No wonder…” I muttered to myself, as I shook my head. “It was a long time ago Cat…some happy days, some not happy days…but it’s too late for a lot of reasons.”

"Okaaaay…" She said. "Well, in any case the idea is one we've all been debating for a while. Basically, as I said, the Elder Tree keeps our population growing so, we need to expand."

“So you need me to help kill things, build things, or gather things?” I asked. “Cause I’m actually pretty good at least two of the three of those things.”

"We have the materials, the weapons and such, the problem is we need… an ambassador." Cat said.

"Like us the Red Tree keeps bringing new ones into the world of their tribe, but faster." Sandra said, sounding a bit upset. "For every one we kill of them, there's ten more replacing them a week. For all we fight them, keep them focused on us, eventually they'll decide to try and leave their territory. You all arriving here, leaving your scents all over everything… they'll put two and two together and realize to get the prey they want, they'll need to leave far beyond this territory, and we won't be able to stop each one. So, we need a boarder… checkpoint. A place we can keep an eye on the edges of this place, and maybe even trade with the other races."

"Yeah. It's why all those traps were so far outside our territory to make all you smart ones keep as far away as physically possible. Seriously, you must have been walking through them all for a month to reach here." Cat added.

“I obtained Trap Sense and Deactivate Trap as a result of getting hit by a few of the minor traps.” I said carefully. “And it was all exclusively me getting hit by the traps cause I’d be fucked if I had my mates get hurt because of it.”

"Oh you brought others here too. Great." Cat huffed. "Well this is your chance. Get you and your mates asses out of here and back somewhere safe and you can some back with hopefully some traders cause I am tired of Jaggi meat."

“Not until I find that damned Barroth and eat the entire thing bones and all.” I said simply. “Only problem is the bastard’s probably a Glacial Barroth at this point…and adapted to the Coal Ice…that’s not gonna be fun to deal with…”

"Ah, so that's why you want the Ice Gems. Well, it's either this or wait for the next open shift in the mine."

“And how soon is the next open shift?” I asked curiously.

She reached into her cloak, pulling out a leather notebook. "Well, assuming no one dies, six months."

“So about that Ambassador talk?” I asked swiftly, not really into waiting six fucking months to find one god damn gem stone.

"Easy. You rush back to the closest other sentient species village, with your family, get the people there to send, even just a small trading merchant or their own ambassador, bring them here and leave your family in the safety of fucking away from here, and I can hand you ten Ice Gems upon your return to the newly built checkpoint."

“I will be needing to bring someone along with me to prove my statements.” I pointed out. “I may be an Alpha, but people won’t just believe my words without some good evidence.”

Cat simply looked at Sandra.

"... I hate you…" Sandra said.

"Do it and the Monofilament ore you've been requesting will be paid in full." Cat countered.

"... Still hate you but fine…"

“Come on, it won’t be as bad as last time I tried introducing you to a group of people.” I said honestly. “It went so well too…”

"They were also big haters of my dad, I was just lucky you didn't say my last name so I just had to sit and listen to them call him crap for three hours." She added.

“Again, I honestly didn’t know…” I sighed out. “I even bought you that expensive Ace Body Pillow as an apology.”

"True, but you also took the… detachable attachment that kinda was the whole point of that pillow."

“It was poorly made anyways.” I said defensively. “I would not let you have something half assed when it was supposed to be a serious apology.” I said readily.

I noticed out of the corner of my eye Cat looking at the both of us like she was trying to figure out some weird secret of the universe.

"And yet when I stopped by your house it was hot glued to the crotch of a life sized sticker of Roy Mustang you two put on a body mirror!"

“I had to test it out, and I wasn’t going to ruin your new body pillow.” I countered. “Plus…honestly it’s hard to choose between those two and you know it.”

"And… wait, if you were… then… why was it in Tina's room when I saw it?"

I raised a hand…then put it to my chin as I tried to remember. “Actually…yeah why did Tina have it in her room? Cause I put the…oh for fuck sakes sis…” I groaned angrily, rubbing my temples.

"Wait, does that mean you two… shared a… okay that's gross even for you two and I've seen you two do some freaky stuff."

“She probably stole it thinking something completely different, that was not my fault.” I shook my head quickly. “Would explain why you said it was also completely clean afterwards…”

"If this is about… sex, if this Tina is also a Zinogre I don't see the issue, Zinogre, especially True Alpha's and Den Mother's always breed with those of close blood." Cat said.

Sandra looked at her, then back at me. "You… oh sweet God of something up above please tell me Tina's kids aren't also yours!"

“Fuck no!” I said quickly. “She fucked someone after I got here, Shopkeeper didn’t say who but she must have found someone special. Believe me, fucking Tina is not something I’m even remotely thinking about.” I explained.

"Says the man who took TRIPLETS to the same bedroom for sex all together! Twice!"

“They all consented and there was nothing involving the three of them together. I was the only one to pleasure them like that.” I said carefully. “Also…bucket list demanded it.” I said carefully.

“Okay seriously…” Cat started, staring at the both of us intently. “Besides the Alpha being horny as shit…how did you two break up cause it sounded like you were a happy couple…if very horny.”

“It’s…a long story that neither of us really want to talk about.” I sighed out.

"Well, if anything at least I can make sure your kids don't grow up into humping rabbits like you." Sandra said flatly. She then looked over at Cat. "And you better have the Monofilament in my house when we get back."

"It will be. Next to his Ice Gems." Cat said simply.

“I’m pretty sure Magnolia is enough to keep their horny under control.” I said honestly. “Seriously…love em to death but being a first time parent…it’s the most stressful thing…” I sighed out.

"So, when do we leave then?"

“Well, when we’re all ready to head out and…also to see if there’s any closer towns cause I doubt you want to walk all the way to the Floof Noodle town.”

"The closest town outside this territory is the Grimalkin village. It's two weeks east from the border to here." Cat said.

“That’s a lot closer, cool.” I nodded. “Well, let’s tell Magnolia and Belle and get set for the travel.” I nodded.

"Alright. Come on then."

“Onwards to meeting new people.”

To be continued...